Medicinal Inorganic Chemistry: Metal‐containing Diagnostic Compounds

Abstract

Metallopharmaceuticals designed for use in diagnostic compounds cover a broad spectrum of diagnostic modalities, starting with barium sulfate for enhanced X‐ray contrast, to the hugely successful gadolinium‐based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents, to more recent advances in positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) requiring radiolabeled metal‐based diagnostic agents for image detection. In each case, the pharmacokinetics of tissue distribution and the thermodynamic stability of the metal‐ligand coordination complex are very important to the clinical utility of the particular compound. For radiolabeling, the speed and ease of radiolabel production are also key features of the metallodiagnostic agent's utility.